Don’t get it wrong: using Google Chrome for Android (BETA) on an Ice Cream Sandwich phone on the Galaxy Nexus is fantastic. In fact, it’s one of the best things that has ever happened to the Android platform, besides the very OS version it runs on, Android 4.0. However, there were some kinks to be had at the time of release, but as of tonight, they have been mostly ironed out for now. Bugs including the fonts being way too large have been addressed, as well as more speed and stability. Go ahead and download the update to see what I mean.

Hours after receiving a 1.2GHz dual-core Galaxy Nexus with Verizon 4G LTE service in the mail, out comes the pressers for the LG Optimus 4X HD, a 1.5GHz quad-core Tegra 3 device bound for Europe with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich stock — no additional interfaces whatsoever. As for aesthetics, there is a 4.7-inch IPS “True HD” 1280 x 720 display within a 8.9mm-thin body yet still holds a massive 2,150 mAh battery. Additional specs include the obvious 8 megapixel camera with 1080p HD video recording and 1.3 megapixel shooter on the front, along with 1GB of RAM and 16GB storage.

Best of all, the new Tegra 3 platform users a fifth “stealth core”, or an eco core that slowly uses the battery for low-performance tasks to ensure that the battery lasts longer. This core as of tonight has been branded “4-Plus-1″, but since everybody knows that’s five, it’s okay. PR at the source link. Via: LG (PR link)

This is quite a mix of 2010 and 2011 specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S3 CPU, 4-inch Super AMOLED panel, 5MP rear camera with 720p video capture, a 1.3MP front-facing shooter and — wait for it — Android 2.3 Gingerbread. It also supports 42Mbps HSPA+ on T-Mobile, which isn’t all half bad at all. The Galaxy S Blaze 4G will launch near the end of March for $150 on a two-year commitment.

Very unusual but expected at some point — Office for iPad, that is. A suite of Word, Excel, and Powerpoint apps (and then some), all optimized for iOS and the iPad’s screen. You could create and edit files in all of the apps aforementioned. The Daily got a working prototype of the app and they seem pretty happy with it (or something). That all being said, neither screenshots or a release date have been documented, so we’ll leave it at that.

The ill-fated BlackBerry PlayBook has something good to look forward to for once: a massive software OTA that allows for native email support (wow, right?), the Android app emulator it was promised so long ago, and several bug fixes and performance optimization. It rolls out slowly to all users, and according to the streams of Twitter, also takes forever to boot, but once you’re inside the new PlayBook OS 2.0, is seems as if you’d never want to go back. Check out the source links below for more.

This is a milestone for NVIDIA: a mainstream smartphone powered completely by its own chips: a dual-core Tegra 2 processor plus a product of an acquisition Nvidia made back in2011, which allows for the Icera 450 HSPA+ modem to take care of baseband and RF processing. Other important specifications include Android 4.0 with ZTE’s own custom finishes, seen left, a 5 megapixel camera, a 4.3-inch qHD (960 x 540) resolution display, and 4GB of built-in memory. The Mimosa X’s spec sheet should pave the way for cheaper pricing when it launches in Q2 of 2012.

This is pretty monumental. The only things you were able to do as an avid user of the Google homepage is to search, but now you can directly share content on Google+ from the start page. Perhaps Google was looking for an easy boost in traffic and usage? It’s not very intrusive, but it is very apparent in its little top right corner. It was eventually coming, but now that it’s here we shall see if users retaliate or embrace it. It also appears in many of the other Google products (an exception is YouTube), but it also is not very intelligent — it does not pick up the URL of the you’re on; say for example you want to share Google News or a location, you would still need to copy/paste the link, manually.

This Week on LaptopMemo — oh wait, I can’t say that yet. This week’s posts are not over, because it’s time for a new TechMemo Podcast hosted on LaptopMemo with Cam the Techtainian! This week was made up of the Galaxy Note, iPad 3 rumors (again!?!), the Windows 8 logo, and the 3 Epic Things and 1 Epic Fail. Check out the show below with the show notes after the break.

A 4:3 aspect ratio 5-inch 1024 x 768 IPS display, a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm processor, an 8-megapixel camera, and will support LTE. That is the Optimus Vu, a Galaxy Note competitor, that has 32GB of storage, measures 5.49 inches by 3.55 inches, is 0.33 inches (8.5mm), and runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread. And like the Galaxy Note, it has support for a stylus with an Ice Cream Sandwich update coming in at least three months. Availability is only for South Korean carriers (at the moment): LG+ and SK Telecom, in early March; no pricing has yet been announced. Via: LG (Korean), The Verge

Ah, the days of PDAs. I remember those days, long ago, where a stylus or pen was used with your personal digital assistant. However, it is the year of 2012, and no one really buys PDAs — they buy smartphones and superphones and an example of this could be the new Samsung Galaxy Note on AT&T with 4G LTE. Immediately after taking it out of the box, there are two things incredibly certain: the Galaxy Note is massive and incredibly light, thin, and easy to hold (once you have become accustomed to its girth). And the S pen is no simple stylus — it supports 250 different forms of pressure for handwriting, note-taking, drawing, and photo-editing, as well as just about any Android app or apps Samsung gets 3rd-party developers on board for.

In all my days of reviewing the latest and greatest of technology, I have never quite come upon the perfect mix of natural feel (the S pen) with futuristic design and feel (the aesthetics and smooth software) than with this new addition to AT&T’s vast catalog. Read on, for the full Galaxy Note review.